Bishop Gardiner
Bishop Stephen Gardiner is the Bishop of Winchester in The Tudors, and appears in Seasons 3 and 4 played by actor Simon Ward. While careful to acknowledge King Henry VIII as Head of the Church of England, Gardiner is presented as a fanatical Catholic who forms the backbone of the counter-Reformation, seeking to overturn Cromwell and locate those he considers 'heretics.' Henry eventually becomes tired and annoyed by Gardiner's ruthless efforts- which further fuel the schism of his kingdom- and expells him from court not long before his death. Season Three Gardiner is first shown presiding over Henry and Jane Seymour's wedding in episode 3.01 (which he presides over) and later speaking with Jane before her wedding night, giving her communion (since Jane is a Catholic, albeit a less judgemental one). Gardiner hopes Henry will turn back to favoring Catholicism with Jane on the Throne and encourages her to speak to Henry on this, but the 'Pilgrimage of Grace' rebellion in the North causes Henry to angrily lash out against the Papacy. Gardiner, however, is pleased by Thomas Cromwell's fall from Henry's favor as a result of the Pilgrimage, as Cromwell is the last great voice of the Reformation after Anne Boleyn's execution. He is dismayed by Jane Seymour's death in 3.04, which puts Henry in such a state of grief that the Kingdom is left ungoverned, since none of the council are willing to take orders from Cromwell in Henry's absence. Late in the Season, Gardiner makes an alliance of convenience with Jane's Protestant brother, Lord Edward Seymour of Hartford, as well as Charles Brandon the Duke of Suffolk, to help destroy Cromwell. Since Henry still considers open Lutheranism heresy, they are able to testify Cromwell's defense of Reformation beyond what the King approved. This, combined with an accusation of treason (which is based on little more than a technicality in the King's marriage to his fourth wife Anne of Cleves) is enough to bring about Cromwell's execution, to Gardiner's savage satisfaction. Season Four With Cromwell out of the way, Gardiner rises in influence in Season Four, now Bishop of Winchester. Despite maintaining his loyalty to the King, he privately has little support for Henry's heir Prince Edward, secretly hoping the King's Catholic oldest daughter, Princess Mary, can be placed on the throne instead. In episode 4.05, he questions Katherine Howard on the matter of her deceiving the King on her sexual history, encouraging her to take the King's offer of mercy and be banished, if she will only admit her guilt in committing adultery wuth Francis Dereham. Katherine foolishly claims she was raped and there was no pre-contract between them, continuing to assert her innocence to preserve her dignity. Gardiner immediately knows she is lying, leading Gardiner and Edward Seymour to question Dereham more carefully. They soon discover she was also unfaithful to the King, which forces Gardiner to take her to the Tower and await her execution. In the latter part of the Season, Gardiner, knowing the King's sixth wife Catherine Parr is secretly a Lutheran, takes charge of the counter-Reformation faction and begins hunting down as many Lutherans as he can. However, to his fury he is temporarily thwarted when the King appoints Catherine Regent while he is at war in France. The war bankrupts the royal exchequer, and Gardiner fears the Lutherans are rising again. His former alliance with Lord Hartford shatters, as he is also certain Hartford and his wife are Reformers, especially as he sees Lady Hartford weeping at the burning of one of her friends. Gardiner instead allies directly with Princess Mary Tudor, explaining to her that he hopes to arrest both Edward Seymour and Queen Catherine and remove as many obstacles from her path to the Throne. Mary, thinking Catherine and Edward are bringing up her younger siblings as heretics, accepts and supports Gardiner's investigations. In episode 4.09. Gardiner comes perilously close to discovering proof of the Queen's 'heresy' and arrests some of her ladies, including her sister, on Henry's permission. He is thwarted from discovering proof of the Seymours' guilt, however, when Lady Hartford vengefully blackmails him: she has discovered that he embezzled two rich monasteries, similar to the corruption of Cardinal Wolsey. Angrily, Gardiner draws up an arrest warrant for the Queen, but it is shown to her by the pro-Lutheran messenger and she and her ladies destroy all evidence. Henry, meanwhile, while not willing to allow further public reformations, is growing angry with Gardiner's vindictiveness, which helps fuel the religious division of England. Having had enough, he allows Gardiner's ally, secretary and Chancellor Risley, to present the arrest warrant for Catherine in the series finale, but then yells furiously at Risley and tells him to get out of his sight. When Bishop Gardiner, shocked by this reversal, tries to see Henry, he is informed the King has banished him permanently from Court. Historical Aftermath Gardiner was arrested and placed in the Tower during the reign of Henry's pro-Protestant son Edward VI, but released and restored to power during the reign of the Catholic Mary I. He died in 1555 of illness Category:Characters